Look Both Ways by Carol J. Perry

O’Ryan have a pleasant evening.”
    â€œHave fun, you two. See you in the morning, Mr. Pennington.” I picked up the cat, and we watched from the window as the school director’s brown Lincoln pulled away from the curb.
    We’d just resumed our spots on the couch when my phone vibrated. The caller ID showed River North’s name. “I was just about to call you,” I told her.
    â€œWhat’s going on?” she said, sounding a bit uneasy. “You’ve been on my mind all afternoon, so I read the cards again. A couple of cards turned up next to yours that haven’t been there before.”
    â€œIs that a good thing?”
    â€œMaybe. I’m not sure. The Ace of Wands is close to you. It means the beginning of an enterprise. Like something of a creative nature might be offered to you. Does that make sense?”
    â€œSure does. What else?”
    â€œOkay. This one’s not so clear. The Knight of Wands is there, too. He’s a man, usually with blond hair and blue eyes. Ring a bell?”
    I immediately thought of Gary Campbell. “I guess I know lots of men who fit that description,” I admitted. “But yeah, there was a recent, um, encounter with one.”
    â€œYou mean the blond guy who bumped into you at the antique store? Possible, but this one might be a friend of yours. He can be generous, but he can be cruel or brutal.”
    â€œThat’s one of those cards that can mean practically anything.”
    She sighed. “I know. But listen. Just be careful around blond, blue eyed men, okay?”
    â€œI’m careful around all men, River. You know that.”
    â€œTrue. Anyway, tell me about the creative opportunity.”
    â€œI don’t know how to handle all this free time, so I’ve been looking for something to do during school vacation,” I said. “Mr. Pennington offered me a chance to work as property manager for the plays the summer theater classes are producing.”
    â€œCreative for sure. Congratulations. Now, what were you going to call me about? Please tell me you’ve opened all those secret compartments. I’m dying to know what’s in that bureau!”
    â€œTo tell you the truth, so am I. But I kind of promised Pete we’d open them together and um . . . he had to leave early.”
    â€œWow. You have a lot more self-control than I do. I would have had those little guys emptied out ten minutes after the thing was delivered.”
    â€œYeah. But I promised. What I wanted to tell you is that . . . a gazing thing happened today.”
    â€œReally?” Her excitement was obvious. “Tell me everything.”
    I explained about the messed-up mirror and how I’d seen the lights and colors while Pete was in the room. “I kind of freaked out, I guess. That’s why Pete left before we’d opened any more of the compartments,” I told her. “I knew there was something I was supposed to look at, but I waited until this afternoon to do it.”
    River sighed. “So I guess you didn’t have the enchanted evening I was visualizing. You’re such a chicken. When are you going to tell that man what you can do?”
    â€œI don’t know.” Deep sigh. I really didn’t know. Would I ever work up the nerve to tell Pete the truth?
    â€œNever mind that now. So, what did you see?”
    I closed my eyes and saw the picture again in my mind. “It was a pretty scene. Calm. Not frightening at all, like most of them have been. There’s a long beach. Waves along the shoreline. There’s a wall. It’s old, crumbling. In the distance I see a woman. Her back is toward me, and there’s a little dog with her. She throws a stick, and the dog retrieves it. She pats him on the head and throws it again. They move down the beach. She’s throwing. He’s bringing the stick back to her, till they’re just tiny spots in the distance. That’s